The Rider
by Digimon Lantern 1
Summary: When Xander dressed as a biker, he ended up becoming Johnny Blaze for that night. After the spell ended, the Rider seemed to disappear until the night Kendra was killed.
1. Prologue

***I DON'T OWN BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER OR GHOST RIDER. BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER IS OWNED BY JOSS WHEDON AND GHOST RIDER IS OWNED BY MARVEL COMICS****

Author's Notes: I know I switch between it and his/him/he when I refer to the Rider. Just deal with it.

The Rider

By:

Digimon Lantern 1

Prologue

Faith Lehane was more scared than she'd ever been in her life. Her Watcher, Diana Domber, was following close behind telling her help was on its way but she didn't believe anything could stop Kakistos. They turned the corner and Faith's eyes were like saucers.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?!" Faith yelled at the top of her lungs.

At first glance, one might have mistaken what she was seeing as a mere biker. Only a mere biker if one were to discount the flaming skeleton that had been wearing the clothes as well as the fiery motorcycle.

"Slayer." The demon said to her. His voice seemed to be a growl.

"Faith, we have to keep moving." Diana said before getting to look at the demon.

"Watcher." The demon said.

The biker demon pulled out a sawed-off double barreled shotgun and pointed it towards them. Diana yanked her Slayer to the ground before the demon fired hitting a vampire who was quickly dusted by the blast. Her Watcher got back to her feet and walked over to the demon biker.

"Rider, you come when summoned." Diana said to it.

"YOU SUMMONED THAT FUCKING THING!?" Faith yelled.

"Faith, language." She scolded her charge. "We're being pursued by a vampire named Kakistos and..."

"I get the picture." The Rider said as it walked away from its bike.

The Rider turned the corner and saw a group of vampires marching toward it. They were armed with axes and swords and for some reason, they were chanting.

"We live for Kakistos. We die for Kakistos." They chanted.

"I like the second part better." The Rider said before firing his hellfire shotgun.

Faith and Diana stood back and watched the Rider go to work. With flaming chains and the shotgun, the Rider dispatched the vampires left and right as if it was nothing.

"What the hell is it?" Faith asked.

"Last Halloween, a chaos mage cast a spell on the costumes in his shop." Diana said calmly as the battle raged on in front of them. "One of his victims happened to buy the costume that was seemingly suppose to transform the man into a biker. Then, the reality of chaos magic hit him like a ton of bricks."

"What happened?" She asked. "Did he get hit with a ton of bricks?"

"Hardly." Diana replied. "The teenager that bought the 'biker' costume gained the ability to transform into the Rider. According to what was in Rupert Giles' reports, he tracked down the mage responsible and delivered the Penance Stare."

Faith smiled. "I didn't realize you read comics, Diana." She said with a smile.

"Where else would I find the research material on that?" Diana asked rhetorically pointing at the Ghost Rider.

The main minions of Kakistos had been dusted and the Rider had his shotgun's barrels under Mr. Trick's chin. The dark skinned vampire frowned.

"I'm going to get killed by a comic book character, aren't I?" He said.

"Yep." The Rider said before firing the weapon.

Mr. Trick was quickly dusted by the blast and Kakistos could be seen walking towards him. He sounded like a horse as he walked. The Rider holstered his weapon and pulled out his chains.

"So, not going to use the shotgun." Kakistos said obviously stating a fact rather than asking a question. "I should warn you that the Penance Stare will have no effect on me and I doubt those chains will either."

The chains lit up with hellfire and the Rider began to laugh. He swung the chains above his head a couple of times before swinging them at Kakistos with the chains wrapping around his head.

"Oh, really." The Rider said before yanking hard on the chains decapitating the vampire. "They seem to work just fine."

Faith watched as Ghost Rider wrapped the chains back around his chest. The Rider then walked back towards his bike. Diana stood next to it.

"So, headed towards Sunnydale?" He asked.

"Yes, since Slayer Summers has abandoned her post, Faith has to pick up the slack." Diana said to him.

"I'll see you there." He replied revving the engine.

"I do have one question." She said to him. "Why did you have that war with Wolfram & Hart?"

"Because a father wanted vengeance." He answered before driving off.


	2. The Rider Emerges

*****I DON'T OWN BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER OR GHOST RIDER. BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER IS OWNED BY JOSS WHEDON AND MUTANT ENEMY. GHOST RIDER IS OWNED BY MARVEL COMICS.*********

Author's Notes: I know I may be accelerating events so forgive me.

Chapter 1

The Rider Emerges

Xander had never been more angry than he'd been in his life. Kendra lay on the floor dead. He wasn't even sure about Willow or Cordelia. Giles was gone. He began to scream as fire licked away at his flesh. Finally, he seemed to fade away as the Spirit of Vengeance took over. The Rider felt ridiculous wearing the Hawaiian shirt but right now it didn't matter. Right now, he felt a soul in his location that was requiring a bit of a staring contest. He walked out of the library as the man walked in. A bit trollish, he was scared to death when he saw the Rider.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU?!" He asked and yelled.

"Your soul has been stained with the blood of the innocent. Feel their pain!" The Rider exclaimed before Snyder began to scream.

(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)

Floyd had been sired in the early sixties at a bar. Being the only "survivor" seemed to have had its advantages as bar fights seemed to now always go his way. At least they did until that demon walked in. The reason he used demon was the fact that the thing was a flaming skeleton wearing a Hawaiian shirt that for the unlife of him, he couldn't figure out why the shirt didn't burst into flames at any time. Pyro demon seemed to stare at him.

"Nice jacket." The demon said.

Floyd remembered that he was wearing a black leather biker jacket and he quickly peeled the jacket off and laid it on a table and backed away from it. Maybe if he gave the thing the jacket, he wouldn't be dusted. He even had the keys to his bike in the jacket. Hopefully, that would be enough for it not to kill him.

"Okay, big guy." Floyd said backing away from the jacket. "You can have my jacket. Hell, I'll let you have my bike. It's the black Harley."

"Thanks." The demon said before hurling a fireball at Floyd which dusted him.

The Rider put the jacket over the Hawaiian shirt. For some reason, the Rider wanted to keep the shirt on. He walked out of the bar and found the Harley. The touch of the Rider hellfired the motorcycle and the Rider rode off into the night.

(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)

Angelus stared at Acathla wondering how long it was going to take Drusilla to get the information out of the Watcher. Torturing the information out of the Watcher by making him think he was talking to that gypsy bitch was a work of genius. The vampire knew it wouldn't take long for the man to crack. He heard a few blasts, eerily familiar to what he heard on Halloween, and turned to see something that he never thought he'd see again.

"Harris, please tell me that isn't you." Angelus said curiously.

"Back to Hell, Deadboy." The Rider said pointing at Angelus.

"It's you." Angelus snarled before quickly ducking as The Rider began to fire away missing the vampire barely.

"Damn!" The Rider exclaimed. "I really gotta learn to aim this thing."

Angelus stood up finally recalling everything that happened to him on Halloween night. That damned night that Ethan Rayne had cast a spell on his costumes in his shop that transformed his unlucky customers into their costumes. Angelus remembered his first encounter with the Ghost Rider and got back to his feet.

"I remember Halloween, Harris." Angelus said almost laughing. "You can't touch me. Willow made you agree to some kind of hellfire contract that said so."

"I remember Halloween as well." The Rider said bringing the double barreled sawed off shotgun to bear. "I also remember the wording of the contract. 'For as long as Angel has his soul, the Rider shall not attempt to do him any harm.'"

"I lost my soul." Angelus said remembering the exact wording of the contract.

"Exactly." The Rider said before firing and missing again. "Damn it!"

Angelus managed to get away and the Rider scanned the mansion looking for the resonance of a soul. He found it and made his way to the room that he was in to see a man he respected like a father being tortured by Drusilla. The female vampire seemed surprised at his appearance.

"My kitten's on fire." She pouted.

"This is for Kendra." The Rider said before firing the shotgun at her chest.

The blast hit the vampire dead center and the woman hit the wall hard. Confusion could be seen in the Rider's body language. Drusilla seemed to be unconscious against the wall.

"That shouldn't have happened." He stated.

"You're right." A voice with a Bronx-accent said from behind him. The Rider turned to see a demon dressed like a 1970s pimp standing there. "It shouldn't have happened."

The Rider reverted back to Xander who was still a bit confused. "Who are you?" He asked.

"Forgive me." The demon said. "Name's Whistler. I'm what is known as a balance demon."

"Why isn't she dust in the wind?" Xander asked. "Proverbially speaking."

"Transform back to the Rider and scan the room." Whistler told him.

Xander transformed into the Rider and began to scan the room again. He saw that Whistler didn't have a soul and Giles had his. The Rider turned to gaze at Drusilla. The way this sense seemed to work was that souls seemed to have a color to them. Giles seemed to be kind of dingy, probably from his past use of dark magic. Drusilla not only scanned to have a soul but it was pure white which meant that the soul was innocent. The Rider walked over to her and transformed back into Xander. Xander bent down and checked her neck.

"Why does she have a pulse?" He asked the demon.

"We're not sure on that one." Whistler told him.

"We?" Xander asked.

"I'm an agent of the PTB or the Powers That Be." Whistler informed him. "We were actually hoping that you would know what happened."

"Nope." Xander said.

"Well, that bites." Whistler replied. "I managed to find out a bit of information for you if you're interested. Information about why the Spirit Of Vengeance is still with you and who is responsible."

"What's the catch?" Xander asked.

"You need to take her with you." Whistler told him. "I know it is asking a lot of you but she'll be the biggest help for you for when you lose track of where you're going."

"What about Angelus?" Xander asked. "He has to be taken care of."

"Don't worry." Whistler said. "Willow will try to perform the ensoulment curse to give Angel back his soul. When you leave tomorrow, tell Buffy that Willow is going to try the curse again. DON'T lie to her or 'conveniently forget' to tell her."

(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)

Giles woke up to the smell of sizzling bacon. Ever since Halloween when Xander's costume had somehow put Ethan and the boy's parents into comas, Giles had been letting his student whom he almost could call a son stay with him. The librarian could hear him talking to a girl whose voice seemed very familiar. He knew Willow was in the hospital and Buffy was probably still on the lamb as it was called so he knew it wasn't them.

"So Dru, how would like your eggs?" Xander asked.

"I think scrambled." Drusilla answered.

Giles' eyes grew as wide as saucers as he heard the name. He knew Xander couldn't be that stupid as to invite the vampire Drusilla, once known as one quarter of the Scourge of Europe, inside to have breakfast. The Watcher grabbed a bottle of holy water he kept stashed in his bedroom and a stake and ran into his kitchen. He saw Xander flipping the bacon on the stove and Drusilla at the table drinking what looked like tea. Giles splashed the holy water in her face and while she seemed off guard, he reared back with the stake.

"So, is this a new ritual when humans wake up in the morning?" She asked clearly more confused than in any sort of pain.

"Good Lord, since when are vampires not effected by holy water?" He asked confused.

"Giles, remember Halloween?" Xander asked him still cooking.

Giles sat down in a chair making sure to stay away from Drusilla but also making sure that he didn't lose sight of her. He rubbed his temples.

"I definitely remember that demon biker you turned into putting Ethan into a coma." Giles answered him. "But as I understood it, it disappeared when the spell was ended."

Drusilla began to chuckle slightly. "Kitten's inner demons won't ever go away." She said.

Xander gave her a glare. "What Dru is trying to say is that the Rider has returned and that was how I rescued you and somehow turned her into a human." He informed Giles.

Giles was bewildered. "How is any of this possible?" He asked.

"Hell if I know, G-Man." Xander answered. "That's what I asked the balance demon that shown up."

"He looked that part up before starting breakfast." Drusilla said taking a sip of her tea.

"What did the demon say?" Giles asked partially ignoring his former tormenter.

"That I had to go to LA with Drusilla and find the one who was responsible for making me the man I am today." Xander told him. "Also, go to the hospital with the ensoulment curse and that Soul Orb thing and give them to Willow. She'll want to do the curse again. Please don't tell anyone about the Rider. I don't want to come back to Sunnydale and have my friends think I'm some sort of freakish demon. Plus, I'm sure I'll be able to control the Rider by the time I get back."

Giles picked up a pair of strange stones on the table. "What are these?" He asked.

"Dru, could you tell him?" Xander asked the newly-reborn human as he was beating the eggs with a whisk. "If my concentration slips, I'll have a mess to clean up."

"Not a problem, Kitten." She said. "Xander made them using his Rider abilities. You keep one here and send the other to the Watcher of the Slayer that was called after I..."

Drusilla began to weep almost uncontrollably. Despite himself, Giles quickly went over to the girl and pulled her close to try to comfort her. None of this was making sense to him but he didn't want to see the girl cry despite what she did to him as a vampire. Xander had set down the bowl and put a hand on her shoulder.

"It's okay." She said wiping the tears from her eyes. "I know I shouldn't feel guilty about what I did but I can't help but feel bad. The things I've done are unforgivable."

"Dru, you're not the same person you were when you were a vampire." Xander said to her.

Tears streaked from her eyes. "I know I have a soul now but how can you forgive me as easily as you are when you never seemed to like Angel." She said to him.

"There's a difference here, Dru." Xander said to her. "When Angel was human, he was already a bastard. You, on the other hand, were a kind and gentle person whom he tortured and drove insane. If this was a court of law, you would've been found not guilty."

(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)

After making preparations, Xander and Drusilla found themselves outside the mansion. He went and told Buffy what he was suppose to tell her and was about to get back onto the motorcycle when the former vampire blocked his path.

"Is there something you want to tell me Dru?" He asked.

"I want vengeance for what Angelus did to me." Drusilla said to him. Her face was filled with fury. "You're the only one who can get me my vengeance."

"But Buffy is going to..." Xander replied before he was interrupted.

"Do you honestly think that a necrophiliac like her will be able to do what is necessary?" She asked.

Xander shook his head. Before he became the Rider, he would have had to leave this in the bleached blonde's hands but now he had the power to do something about it. He grabbed the chains and his shotgun and looked up at the sky. A fierce storm seemed to sprout up blanketing them in darkness.

"Obviously, someone else seems to agree with you." Xander said turning towards the entrance.

He saw a rather attractive woman walking towards them. It wasn't Buffy but the Rider flared up as he recognized what she was. He pointed at her.

"Demon." He said.

"Listen, I don't care who you think you are but I'm Anyanka and vengeance is my domain not yours." She said to him.

The Rider grabbed his chains and whipped them around the demon's neck. He yanked her off of her feet and dragged her towards him. She tried to struggle in vain but his strength was too great. Almost instinctively, he yanked the amulet from around her neck and melted it in a blaze of hellfire. Suddenly, a feeling of being powerless swept over her.

"A more fitting form of vengeance." He said to her. "Don't you think?"

She ran away as he made his way into the mansion. He soon saw Angelus knock out Buffy and move as though the master vampire was about to suck her blood. The Rider fired off a warning shot.

"I wouldn't if I were you, Deadboy." The Rider warned him.

Angelus dropped Buffy to the ground and began to laugh. The Rider could see Acathla's mouth open up and the portal begin to form.

"It's too late, Rider." Angelus said. "My boy, Acathla, is already opening up his portal to send this entire world straight into hell."

"Not if I send you there first, Deadboy." The Rider said before punching the master vampire right in the face.

Angelus was staggered by the blow but recovered quickly and delivered a punch to the Rider's flaming skull. He backpedaled rather quickly as the vampire tried to put out the small flames that appeared on his hand.

"Com'n Harris, fight fair." Angelus said almost pleading.

The Rider began to beat into the master vampire with a profound fury. With each blow, he yelled the name of one of Angelus' recent victims. Battered, broken, and beaten, Angelus fell to his knees helpless as the Rider's chains wrapped around his throat.

"And this is for Jenny!" The Rider exclaimed as he saw a greenish flash appear in the vampire's eyes. He could see the soul return to the vampire and mentally, he cursed.

"What the hell?" Angel asked seemingly confused. "Xander, is that you?"

The Rider removed his chains from around the vampire's throat as he realized the agreement that Willow had gotten the hunter into was back in place. He reverted back to his more human form.

"Angel, shut up because we don't have a lot of time." Xander said hoping that by using the vampire's real name that he might make the vampire realize how grave the situation was. "You lost your soul and used Acathla to open a portal to suck the entire planet into a hell dimension. There's only one way to close it."

Somehow despite his injuries, Angel got back to his feet and grabbed one of the two swords that were on the ground. The vampire walked over to the edge of the still opening portal and looked over at Xander.

"Tell her I'm sorry." He said before stabbing himself through the abdomen and falling through the portal.

The portal closed and Xander saw Buffy begin to stir. Xander left the mansion and walked over to Drusilla. He nodded and sat down on the motorcycle with the former vampire sitting behind him. The storm was over as he turned on the motorcycle and sped off down the road.


	3. Confessions

*****I DON'T OWN BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER OR GHOST RIDER. BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER IS OWNED BY JOSS WHEDON AND MUTANT ENEMY. GHOST RIDER IS OWNED BY MARVEL COMICS.*********

Author's Notes: For an idea on what William Emerson looks like, picture Michael Clarke Duncan.

Chapter 2

Confessions

Somehow, it seemed as though a beacon was drawing him towards the mansion. He stopped at the gate and pressed the button for the intercom. Before he could speak, the gates swung open as if he was expected.

"I don't like this, Kitten." Dru said from behind him.

He rode up to the front door and turned off his bike. They got off and walked inside. A large black man in a blue pinstripe suit greeted them at the door. He held a black leather briefcase with 'Griffin & Draco' embossed on the side of the case facing them.

"Greetings, Mr. Harris." The man said to them. "My name is William Emerson. I'm the executor to Mr. Charles Prescott's will."

"What's this about?" Xander asked.

"If you'll follow me, I've everything set up to show you exactly what this is about." Emerson said gesturing the two to follow him.

They followed the lawyer down the hall and entered an office where a television had been set up as well as a few chairs. Xander and Dru sat down as Mr. Emerson turned the television on. A man with gray hair appeared on the screen smiling.

"Hello Alexander, or as my lawyers insist I call you, Xander, I'm sorry we never got the chance to meet but I'm told you'll do me proud. You see, I first need to ask you for forgiveness for what I put you through by turning you into Ghost Rider. What I did is unforgivable but I'm sorry. If it helps, you're my sole beneficiary to my will. The moment you walked into my home, you became a multi-billionaire. That is yours regardless of what you may decide to do. I had no living relatives to contest this." Mr. Prescott said. "Now, I will tell you my reasons. My only son played football in college and had entered into a managerial contract with Wolfram & Hart. A month later, he was killed by a drunk driver and I found out from my lawyers from Griffin & Draco that my son's contract held a clause which sealed his soul within a hell dimension that the firm controls. I tried every way in the world to get my son's soul freed from the contract."

Xander turned to see tears rolling down Dru's cheeks. "The rich man was so sad, Kitten." She told him.

"Then, a seer under Griffin & Draco's employ foresaw the events that would occur in your hometown on Halloween. The seer saw enough to know that you held the greatest possibly of retaining the most aspects of your costume and the seer instructed the firm to manipulate events so that you would go as my son's favorite super hero that night." Mr. Prescott continued. "I was informed that I wouldn't live to see this day so I had my will changed to have you inherit everything I own. I know it can't make up for what I had done to you but I hope that you decide to follow the plan that William and his fellow lawyers at Griffin & Draco created. I'll understand if you don't but I hope you will. Goodbye."

The television faded to black and Mr. Emerson opened up his briefcase. He pulled out a couple of forms and handed them to Xander to look over. A smirk crossed Xander's face.

"Rather simple forms you got here." Xander remarked.

"I believed that these would be sufficient." Mr. Emerson joked handing Xander a pen.

After filling out the papers, Xander gave them back to the lawyer who placed them back in his briefcase. Xander sighed and looked out the window.

"If I do decide to do this, how in the hell will I be able to locate these lawyers?" He asked. "I doubt they go out shedding the blood of the innocent."

"When the sun goes down in fifteen minutes, we contracted a local coven to essentially place mystical beacons that you should be able to detect quite easily." Mr. Emerson informed him.

"Let me guess the plan." Xander said. "Basically, I do a great deal of damage to Wolfram & Hart's infrastructure and then offer a deal. They accept the deal knowing that my Penance Stare burns the soul and since their souls are under contract with them, they lose more assets by trying to keep Mr. Prescott's son's soul than if they release it."

"Precisely, Xander." Mr. Emerson said. "So I take it you accept?"

Dru looked over at him. "You should help the sad man, Kitten." She told him.

Xander shook his head defeated. "Why do I let myself get talked into these things?" He asked himself. "Will you be alright by yourself?"

"If you don't mind, I'm going to an event tonight and I need a date." Mr. Emerson said looking over at Drusilla. "I would be honored if you would go with me."

"I believe the lawyer will make certain of it." Drusilla said. "It's almost nightfall."

"Have a good night, you two." Xander said as he headed out the door.

He didn't bother waiting for a reply. Night was falling and he could feel the Rider yearning to come forth. Xander got onto the motorcycle as dusk fell and transformed into the Rider. He sped off into the night as he felt the first beacon light up. It didn't take long to reach his destination. The lawyer was exiting a demon brothel with a rather large grin on his face. He wasn't going to have that grin for long. The Rider pulled off his chain and hurled them towards the lawyer. The chains wrapped themselves around him and the Rider dragged the screaming lawyer over to him. A few people from inside the brothel took a glance outside but one look at the Rider made them retreat back into the establishment. The lawyer somehow managed to fish out a business card.

"Wait, I work for Wolfram & Hart." He said.

"I know, Mr. Park." The Rider said. "Your soul is stained with the blood of the innocent. Feel their pain. Look into my eyes."

Gavin Park screamed as the Penance Stare was performed on him. When it was over, the Rider dropped the lawyer to the ground and walked back to his bike. His night wasn't through yet.

(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)

Drusilla had chosen to wear a simple white strapless dress to the event. It was some kind of fund raiser but she wasn't really interested. She stayed close to Emerson as he walked over to a gray-haired man.

"Holland Manners, so nice to see you again." Emerson said though it was clear from the tone of his voice that he wasn't being honest.

"William Emerson, I see you aren't going stag tonight." Manners said before he got a good look at whom the rival lawyer had brought with him. "Drusilla, nice to see you again."

"The feeling isn't mutual." Drusilla replied.

"I must commend you, Bill, for how you pulled this little joke off." Manners said with a laugh. "I guess I'll have to check with security to see how you got a master vampire past the wards that specifically prevent that sort of thing."

Emerson reached into the pocket of his suit jacket and pulled out a simple silver cross on a necklace chain. He walked behind Drusilla.

"I was going to give you this afterwards but I think now is the perfect time." Emerson said putting on her.

"It's pretty." Drusilla said appraising her gift. "Thank you."

A look of surprise washed over as he saw the cross wasn't burning her. He took a step back mainly out of surprise and he wasn't the type of person that liked being surprised. A chuckle could be heard coming from Emerson.

"Now, now, Holland." Emerson said with a smile. "You look like you've just had someone walk on your grave."

Before Holland Manners could reply, a redheaded woman in a black dress walked over to him.

"Sir, it's the office." She said before handing over the cell phone she had been holding.

"Yes...what?!" Holland exclaimed. "I'll be right there." He hung up the phone.

"Something the matter, Holland?" Emerson asked.

"Just a negotiation that went south, Bill." Holland replied. "I need to get back to the office."

"Another time, Holly." Emerson said. "See you later."

"Ta ta, Mr. Manners." Drusilla said smiling. "I hope you have a pleasant night."

Holland Manners walked away from them and Emerson allowed himself a chuckle. He turned his attention to his date who had picked up a glass of champagne from a server. She slowly took a sip from the glass.

(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)

Kate Lockley ran after her perp that she'd been chasing for the last fifteen minutes. She was suppose to be off duty and while walking past a neighborhood grocery store when she heard an alarm erupt from the place and a man dressed in dark clothing tear away from the store. She ran after the man but he was quite adept at eluding her. Finally, the man found himself in a dead end alley and nervously pointed his gun at her. She returned the favor pointing her service pistol at him.

"LAPD!" She exclaimed. "FREEZE!"

Thankfully, the man dropped his gun and his bag but Kate knew the look in the man's eyes. He was afraid. It was clear to the detective that it wasn't her that he was afraid of based of where he was looking. She turned around to see something she knew couldn't exist. It looked like a flaming skeleton dressed as a biker was walking towards them.

"David Allen," The biker said. "your soul has been stained with the blood of the innocent. Time for you to feel their pain."

Thinking quickly to try to save her perp from whatever this thing was, she stepped in front of it. "Wait, I'm a cop." She said pulling out her badge. "I can make sure he gets the punishment he deserves."

The biker looked at her and Kate briefly wondered if it was checking her out. It turned to look at the perp.

"Promise to behave and do whatever the nice lady cop says, David?" He asked

"Yah." The guy said with fear laced in his voice.

"Got handcuffs?" The biker asked her. Kate fished out the handcuffs. "He's yours, officer."

"Detective, actually." Kate replied before wondering why in the hell she felt like apologizing.

"Remember David, if I see you again..." The biker said before putting two bony hands to his mouth and letting out a sharp whistle. Kate was shocked when she saw the demonic looking motorcycle pull up. The biker got onto it and revved the engine. "...nothing will save you from me."

The demon biker let out a bone-chilling laugh as he rode away. Kate turned to find her suspect collapsed on the ground. She walked over to check his vitals when she smelled a rather foul odor coming from him.

"It figures." She said to herself as she rolled the guy onto his stomach. "I always end up with the weirdos on my day off."

(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)(-)

It was the next morning when Holland Manners called the emergency meeting to discuss the attacks on their workforce. He sat at the head of the table as he saw three of the brightest lawyers enter the boardroom. Lilah Morgan followed closely by Lindsey McDonald and Lee Mercer. More people arrived and then the meeting started. Everyone opened the manilla folders that had been in front of them and leafed through the files.

"So, Gavin's contract was terminated." Lilah said with a smirk. "I thought it might happen eventually."

"Mr. Park's contract wasn't terminated, Miss Morgan." Holland replied. "His contract was destroyed when his soul was exposed to a strange type of hellfire."

"Hellfire on this plane of existence?" Lee Mercer asked. "How is that even possible?"

"We don't know but we've lost quite a few people tonight because of it." Holland continued. "Their eyes seemed to have been charred from exposure."

"How the hell did that happen?" Lindsey asked. "Ghost Rider hit them with the Penance Stare?"

That remark caused those in attendance to turn their attention towards Lindsey who looked at them a bit strangely.

"What?" He asked. "No one ever read comic books as a kid."


End file.
